Provision of Operational Acceptance support to SHAPE

Provision of Operational Acceptance support to SHAPE. Monitor and analyse CIS projects and services, tracking project milestones, requirements, scope, timelines, costs, dependencies and changes. Prepare project progress reports, dashboards and dependency matrices to support management oversight and decision-making. Identify, assess and monitor operational risks, project issues and critical dependencies, recommending corrective and mitigation actions.

Maintain project risk registers and conduct periodic risk assessments and reviews. Develop and maintain Operational Acceptance Criteria (OAC) based on operational requirements, functionality, performance and user needs. Plan, coordinate, execute and assess User Acceptance Testing (UAT) and Operational Acceptance Testing (OAT) for new or modified CIS systems and services. Review test plans, test cases, requirements traceability matrices and test documentation to ensure acceptance requirements are met.

Conduct or witness service-based testing, operational testing and evaluation, performance, availability, failover and end-to-end service testing. Establish service baselines and assess readiness for site acceptance, user acceptance, operational acceptance and transition to service. Identify, document and track defects, acceptance deficiencies and residual risks, ensuring corrective actions or acceptable workarounds are implemented. Support the transition of delivered systems and services into operational use, ensuring they meet agreed requirements with minimal mission impact.

Coordinate with NCIA Project Managers, ACO Senior Requirements Owners, operational requirements managers and other technical and business stakeholders. Produce and contribute to project review reports, operational acceptance reports, test reports, corrective action reports and acceptance dashboards.

Requirements: Master of Science (MSc) degree in Computer Science, Engineering or a related discipline from a nationally recognised or certified university, with at least 5 years of relevant post-degree experience. Minimum 3 years of experience in CIS project and service analysis, monitoring and reporting. Minimum 3 years of experience in planning and executing acceptance testing activities. Minimum 3 years of experience with ITIL v3. Minimum 3 years of experience in CIS projects involving core communications and IT infrastructure.

Knowledge of NATO responsibilities, organisation and operational environment. Knowledge of software, system and service lifecycle management and quality management, preferably within a PRINCE2 and ITIL environment. Working-level knowledge of Microsoft Office, Microsoft Project, Visio and SharePoint. Working knowledge of JIRA. Strong analytical, reporting, coordination and problem-solving skills, with the ability to identify risks, assess dependencies and recommend corrective actions.

Ability to communicate effectively, both verbally and in writing, including preparing reports and delivering briefings. Valid NATO Secret security clearance, maintained in accordance with the contract requirements.

Desirable qualifications: PMP certification, PRINCE2 Foundation or Practitioner certification, ISTQB Foundation Level certification, experience with NATO CIS projects involving software applications for the Operational Digital Workplace, experience working in an international environment comprising military and civilian personnel, knowledge of NATO responsibilities and organisation, including Allied Command Operations (ACO) and Allied Command Transformation (ACT).

Location: Primarily on-site at SHAPE Headquarters, Mons, Belgium, with possible activities in The Hague and other ACO locations.

Contract duration: 1 January–31 December 2027, with a possible one-year extension into 2028.